Sebastien Artemidorus Kerwin
A proud and venerable Blood Elf with the wisdom of centuries behind him, Sebastien Artemidorus Kerwin has served his people for several human lifetimes with more yet to come. His noble line thought extinguished during Arthas's invasion of Silvermoon, only he and his son, Satchiel Valas Kerwin, remain to preserve the family name. Known for his roaring voice, swift and fiery temper, and powerful skill as a fire magus, Kerwin is known widely across Silvermoon as the "Pyre of Tranquillien." Recently named Convocate of the Arcana as part of the Convocation of Silvermoon, Kerwin oversees all of the kingdom's magical ventures. His boundless energy and enthusiasm endear him to many - while his ruthlessly nationalistic and jingoistic nature marks him as deserving of caution. Early Adventures Sebastien was born to the noble Kerwin household in the village of Tranquillien. Tracing their lineage back as far as the founding of Quel'Thalas, the Kerwins were known for the strong magical affinities passing through their bloodline; it was quite rare for one of their line to practice anything outside of scholarly or magical pursuits. As one of a pair of twins, Sebastien was lauded and hailed for his potential; however, his brother, Alcyr Trelaine Kerwin, was relegated to the background, as he lacked magical skill in near any capacity. Nonetheless, Sebastien worked with his twin often, and the pair traveled across the known reaches of the Eastern Kingdoms in their youth, taking great strides in joining the Silvermoon Farstriders. Eventually, Sebastien took up position as one of the ruling nobles of Tranquillien, and Alcyr began leading the village's regular patrols against the Amani Trolls. In settling down like this, however, the legendary brothers began to drift from the spotlight. Love and Family The most prevalent of Sebastien's features during his youth was his proliferation of lovers - his suave demeanor and womanizing ways left broken hearts across the whole of the Alliance - he was even rumored to have seduced his way from a Troll's cookpot at one point during his adventures with Alcyr. However, there was one woman who captivated Sebastien, mind and soul - Saeryn Nivarre, a priestess of the Light and one of the only things that could drive a wedge between the normally inseperable Kerwin brothers. Alcyr and Sebastien competed endlessly for her affection - Sebastien was the clear favorite, given his public persona and the eligibility of him as the future lord over the Kerwin lands in Tranquillien, but Alcyr acquitted himself well, sneaking in to relieve the tedium of Saeryn's public life by stealing her off to hidden locales and the more lovely locales of Eversong. The three were often together during those years. Of course, trouble found them in time. The Amani still raided regularly, and on one of Alcyr's jaunts with Saeryn from the relative safety of the Farstriders' Retreat near Silvermoon, a group of trolls captured Saeryn, making off with her and wounding Alcyr. Sebastien rushed to their sides before Alcyr had finished bandaging his wounds to pursue. The two crept into the Amani camp, Sebastien slaughtering the trolls in a firey rage upon seeing Saeryn trussed up as a prisoner. Alcyr swept the outer perimeter, killing the trolls that fled or hid before they could exact revenge on the Quel'dorai - but Saeryn's heart had been stolen. Sebastien and Saeryn were wed the following year with the blessings of her family, and soon Sebastien had a family of his own - his firstborn daughter Lanae quickly found her strength in martial service as a spellbreaker. Sebastien's son Satchiel followed scholarly paths, showing little aptitude for magic but a strong will and a stout heart as a tradesman and alchemist. His youngest daughter Sofia, the apple of her father's eye, soon sought the priesthood following in the footsteps of her mother. It was a happy time, one marked by prosperity and peace. Regrettably, no such time ever lasts. The Pyre of Tranquillien Sebastien's great fame came from an incident well into his middle age. Still stinging from the losses Sebastien had inflicted upon them in times past, the Amani had come to dread the coming of the fire magister, and gave Tranquillien a wide berth. When Sebastien left the city on a diplomatic mission to Stormwind roughly seven years before the onset of the Third War, however, the Amani took note. A massive raiding force, three times the number of Tranquillien's defenders, rushed the wards that day. Aided by dark voodoo and sheer tenacity, they progressed despite casualties inflicted by the Farstriders in brutal, brief guerilla strikes. Forced to fall back from numbers, the defenders of Tranquillien held the line at Alcyr's command, as word was sent by swift spellcraft to both Silvermoon proper and Sebastien. Reinforcements from the Farstriders were dispatched quickly - and just as the Amani threatened to break into the town proper, Sebastien appeared, still in his envoy's robes, with fury in his eyes. Heat radiating off him, he strode through the city, burning the bodies of the fallen high elves before they could be taken, following swiftly after by incinerating the Amani that fled his presence, herded into deathtraps by the Farstriders and remaining spellbreakers. Despite the massacre, the Quel'Dorai gave Sebastien the name that would stay with him the remainder of his days: The Pyre of Tranquillien. The Third War It wasn't long, but a few short years following the incident in Tranquillien, that word came of the plague sweeping Lordaeron. Not long after, it seemed but a heartbeat of the Quel'dorai, their beloved nation was under siege. Close as it was to the border of Quel'Thalas, Sebastien and Alcyr leapt to their peoples' defense as the war raged, retreating step by bloody step against the tactical brilliance of Arthas Menethil and his untiring legions of Scourge. Sebastien served as a rallying point for the people of Tranquillien, saving all the lives he could as Alcyr struck in brutal guerilla raids. Eventually Tranquillien itself was under siege, and Sebastien sallied forth as he always had, buying time for the civillians to flee back to Silvermoon with his brother at his side. As the city burned, however, a freezing blast of magic shattered a column next to Sebastien, a six-inch shard of marble burying itself in the back of his head. Alcyr struck down the Scourge responsible a moment later, and quickly scooped up his brother, delivering him into the hands of one of Sebastien's comrades-in-arms, the master Arcanist Fortes'thal, saying only "save him" before rushing back to the battle. Fortes'thal immediately teleported himself back to Silvermoon, deep into the recesses of his laboratory. Encasing Sebastien's body in a then little-known green crystal to preserve his existance with a spell of arcane stasis, Fortes'thal began work on his riskiest, most brilliant experiment. Just as he had finished the last spell and secured the crystal containing Sebastien, Fortes'thal turned to find his newly undead guardians. The Scourge turned his laboratory into rubble. Fortes'thal died near instantly. Resurrection and Renewal During the course of the excavation of Silvermoon and its reconstruction, Spellbreaker mixed scourge-clearing patrols uncovered the remains of Fortes'thal's laboratory. The patrol was happy to record nothing out of the ordinary until Ixidos Qel'Rama, an arcane engineer and former student of Sebastien, uncovered a hollow, secure chamber where a large green crystal hovered in almost pristine safety. Taking the crystal back to Sunfury Spire and bringing it before the Magisters, Ixidos proposed that the crystal be studied, as it both resembled the fel crystals brought back by Kael'Thas and had an entirely different structure and arcane focus. As Ixidos began to explain, the crystal abruptly glowed, releasing a thick mist across the chamber. As the crystal fell into pieces, the newly awakened Sebastien strode forth from the mist nude, his body that of an elf a third his age in the prime of health. Looking upon the Magisters as they gazed in awe upon him, Sebastien gave a charismatic smirk, himself utterly not understanding what had come to pass - winked at the lovely magestrix to the right of the Grand Magister and then proudly proclaimed his return to active duty. The Pyre of Tranquillien had risen again. Gentleman Adventurer Sebastien found adjusting to the new world stage a bit difficult - regaining his faculties with his magic slowly, he accepted demotion and won support bit-by-bit as he had in the days of his youth - his roaring personality and lascivious attitudes winning him as many friends as enemies. More than anything, Sebastien began to hunger for adventure. And adventure he did, traveling far and wide across the once-familiar Eastern Kingdoms and the reaches of Kalimdor. As he traveled, he made numerous contacts - from the cavalier attitude of Gazrael to the radical group calling itself the Bloodhand, developing a kinship of sorts with its leader, Lutherion Hawkspear. Declining to join the Bloodhand at every opportunity given him, Sebastien found it more convenient to wait and watch. Convocate Kerwin During the course of Sebastien's travails, he often seemed to find himself drawn back toward the political arena. Much as his adventures gained him a joy he had not felt in decades, the loss of his family and the devastation wrought upon his home yet filled him with a sense of fatherly responsibility towards his people and his nation. Involving himself as permitted by his station as a Magister alongside the Convocation of Silvermoon, Sebastien formed fast friendships with Elexandre Solisbane and his wife the Convocate-General Aramalia Solisbane. When the Convocation sought to fill its ranks after the resignation of several of its key members, including former Convocate of the Armamentarium Gwrthyrn Quel'Amad, Sebastien saw his time to step in. First running for Convocate of Regulation against Giussepe Quattrocchi, Sebastien was eventually defeated but gained a rapport with Quattrochi that has endured for some time, the two elder statesmen having much common ground. It wasn't long after this decision before the Second Scourge Invasion began. Mustering an admirable defense of Silvermoon from little organization and less time to prepare, Sebastien fought unceasingly in the city streets, barking orders and giving direction from chaos whilst patrolling for more Scourge. Shouting a rallying speech from the heart of the city, Sebastien gained wide accord and recognition as one of the invasion's heroes. Finally, however, Sebastien noticed that situations in his own department of the Arcana were not entirely stable. Nalathas Dawnfire, Convocate of the Arcana at the time, had been engaged in long work along the frontlines in both Outland and Northrend, working alongside the Dragonflights and then putting himself at the forefront of the Nexus war. Seeing this as an intolerable breach of responsibilities, Sebastien did his best to aid the Convocation in Dawnfire's stead. When Dawnfire at last was declared missing in action for a short time, Sebastien was appointed as temporary convocate - a situation made permanent by vote when Dawnfire returned, injured, but preferring to return to the front after his recovery. Sebastien accepted the station with honor, and has since worked to reinforce a strong structuring of the department of the Arcana. In Sebastien's reorganized department, research and development is as important a division as the traditional magocratic lines of the magi of Flames, Frost, and Arcanists, regularly working on ways to strengthen Silvermoon's wards and rework tactics to aid in the magical prowess of the Horde overall. His heart as ever belongs to his people however, and Sebastien has worked diligently to find new and more powerful ways to strengthen Blood Elf value to the Horde, going so far as to work with Tauren and Deathknight forces to gain new insights into natural magics and the terrifying prowess of the Scourge's necromancy. Applying Blood Elf academia and observation to engineering, Sebastien has also worked to expand the city's Arcanist network, keeping utilities and other magical contrivances of day-to-day life accessible and easy to utilize. Sebastien's work is not without cost, however. The fel energy crystals that dominate most of the city have yet to be removed - a measure Sebastien sees as necessary given the power demands of Blood Elf magical eminence and the shortages of resources during the wars against both the Scourge and Alliance. The renewed Sunwell is of particular importance to Sebastien - and while he was overjoyed at its inception and has monitored it closely ever since, he has not judged it presently sufficient to both control all Blood Elf magical needs and the needs of his people abroad as the Sunwell had in days past. He has been working towards solutions involving "clean" arcane energies, particularly from those siphoned from the Netherstorm in Outland, but shortages of resources and able minds to dedicate to those tasks leave progress slow in coming. The Search for Gideon Quotes Quotes by Sebastien (Feel free to add quotes heard from Sebastien here) *"Reality, sir? Your reality is naught but lies and balderdash, and I'm quite happy to have no concept of it whatsoever!" *"You see, you've known me for some time, and perhaps see me as an old fool. That would be a mistake. For you see, I will find him. And when I do, he will be alive, unharmed, and whole. For if I find him and he is not...then I will destroy 'King' Arthas, melt what remains of his citadel to slag - and BOIL THE SEAS ABOUT HIM FOR THE NEXT THOUSAND YEARS!" - In Regards to Gideon Torias Kerwin (The Rothschilde) *"Couldn't? Couldn't!? I am the Pyre of Tranquillien, child, and there is nothing - nothing I couldn't do, had I cause! And now? Now I have one. Do you understand?" *"I am Sebastien Artemidorus Kerwin. I have fought in four wars and countless smaller conflicts across four continents. I have led armies of thousands into battle with every manner of implement from horse and blade to spellcraft to base technology. I have seen the depths of Un'Goro and the heart of Stranglethorn Vale, and tribes of Trollkind and other peoples no Quel'dorai had ever seen before. I have fought and won many fortunes, killed many men, and loved one wife with a passion a flea such as you could never understand. I am the Pyre of Tranquillien. Now go home before I dain to waste effort on you." Quotes about Sebastien (Feel free to add quotes heard about Sebastien here) Rumors (Feel free to add rumors heard about Sebastien here) *Sebastien bears such a hate for the remaining Quel'dorai that he's been barred from Dalaran to avoid "diplomatic incidents." *Sebastien has been covertly aided by members of the Azure Dragonflight in preparing Silvermoon's ley lines against magical assault. *Sebastien Kerwin died in the Third War. What remains is not really him. *Sebastien is far more hale and healthy than his age would suggest. Category:Characters Category:Blood Elf Category:Horde Mage Category:Horde Category:Kingdom of Quel'Thalas